24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race gets going this weekend
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If you’re looking to follow something this weekend that doesn’t involve the Lakers you might want to check out the 24 Hours of Le Mans. More than 50 of the world’s fastest sports cars from the American Le Mans and Le Mans series will be competing against each other -- and the clock -- on an 8.5-mile semi-permanent road course in northwestern France.
Audi, which has taken overall honors in eight of the last nine years, is the favorite with its new R15 turbo diesel prototype. Peugeot is a strong contender for victory, too, and its squadron of ex-Formula One drivers will be looking to break Audi’s stranglehold on the event.
The race also may be the last time we’ll hear the rumbling Corvettes blast down the Mulsanne Straight thanks to General Motors’ financial woes and the suspected future demise of the GT1 class. Of course, there are plenty of other cars to keep an eye on -- Aston Martin, Porsche, Ferrari, Spyker and Mazda are also taking part. Here’s a handy guide to all the cars.
SPEED network will be covering 19 hours of race starting at 5:30 a.m. Saturday. The other five hours will be aired on its website. You can also catch it on the radio.
Oh, and here’s a quick lap of Le Mans narrated by Audi driver and two-time Le Mans winner Allan McNish (click on the ‘HQ’ button on the video player if the video doesn’t start by hitting the play button):
-- Austin Knoblauch
